Israel and the country of Jordan both lay claim to the lowest place on earth, the Dead Sea. We stayed on the Israeli side but can see Jordan across the lake.

This morning we got up bright and early. It was hard to leave the Sea of Galilee, but knowing we had more to explore got us motivated.

Our first stop was the Jordan river, which flows out of the Sea of Galilee and in to the Dead Sea. One of our group got baptized here. Which one do you think?

It was Cari. What a special moment we had watching her get baptized by Pastor John in the same river where Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist!

The town of Bel Shem, has housed the Israelites, the Philistines, the Romans and now back to the Israeli's. The ruins here are what they have found of the Roman empire and are fascinating.

Kari and I walked to the top of the hill you see in the background of the other picture. The tree here was brought in by Hollywood to film Judas' suicide in "Jesus Christ Superstar." After finding that out I couldn't get the songs out of my head!

Although this is a Roman Gate, the Philistines had a gate here also. And when they conquered Saul and his two sons, they hung the bodies on the wall of the gate to this city.

John the Bapitst replied in the words of the prophet Isaiah, "I am the voice of the one crying in the wilderness. Prepare the way for the Lord. . . " This is the wilderness of Judea, where John preached.

And this is where John "Prepared" Jesus by baptizing him. It's also the site of where the Israelites crossed to the land of Canaan. We did our baptisms in a different part of the Jordan for obvious reasons.

Since we were so close to the country of Jordan we got a chance to meet a couple of 19 year old Israeli patrols. In Israel men and women from 18-20 are expected to serve 2 years in their army.

We continued along the Jordan river until we got to the Dead Sea, where we explored the ancient dwellings at Qumran, where the Dead Sea scrolls were found.

We ended the Sabbath (which means "to sit") floating in a sitting position on the Dead Sea. It was like bath water and very relaxing. Until tomorrow, Shalom.

How low can you go? Apparently 440 meters (1/4 of a mile) below sea level. Today we ended at the lowest exposed land mass on earth . . . the Dead Sea! Before we arrived, we had a lot happening. Come join us in the fun as Me, Kari, Cari and Merri find more to explore in Israel.

How Low Can You Go?

Israel and the country of Jordan both lay claim to the lowest place on earth, the Dead Sea. We stayed on the Israeli side but can see Jordan across the lake.

This morning we got up bright and early. It was hard to leave the Sea of Galilee, but knowing we had more to explore got us motivated.

Our first stop was the Jordan river, which flows out of the Sea of Galilee and in to the Dead Sea. One of our group got baptized here. Which one do you think?

It was Cari. What a special moment we had watching her get baptized by Pastor John in the same river where Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist!

The town of Bel Shem, has housed the Israelites, the Philistines, the Romans and now back to the Israeli's. The ruins here are what they have found of the Roman empire and are fascinating.

Kari and I walked to the top of the hill you see in the background of the other picture. The tree here was brought in by Hollywood to film Judas' suicide in "Jesus Christ Superstar." After finding that out I couldn't get the songs out of my head!

Although this is a Roman Gate, the Philistines had a gate here also. And when they conquered Saul and his two sons, they hung the bodies on the wall of the gate to this city.

John the Bapitst replied in the words of the prophet Isaiah, "I am the voice of the one crying in the wilderness. Prepare the way for the Lord. . . " This is the wilderness of Judea, where John preached.

And this is where John "Prepared" Jesus by baptizing him. It's also the site of where the Israelites crossed to the land of Canaan. We did our baptisms in a different part of the Jordan for obvious reasons.

Since we were so close to the country of Jordan we got a chance to meet a couple of 19 year old Israeli patrols. In Israel men and women from 18-20 are expected to serve 2 years in their army.

We continued along the Jordan river until we got to the Dead Sea, where we explored the ancient dwellings at Qumran, where the Dead Sea scrolls were found.

We ended the Sabbath (which means "to sit") floating in a sitting position on the Dead Sea. It was like bath water and very relaxing. Until tomorrow, Shalom.

Latest comments

How Low Can You Go?

Israel and the country of Jordan both lay claim to the lowest place on earth, the Dead Sea. We stayed on the Israeli side but can see Jordan across the lake.

This morning we got up bright and early. It was hard to leave the Sea of Galilee, but knowing we had more to explore got us motivated.

Our first stop was the Jordan river, which flows out of the Sea of Galilee and in to the Dead Sea. One of our group got baptized here. Which one do you think?

It was Cari. What a special moment we had watching her get baptized by Pastor John in the same river where Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist!

The town of Bel Shem, has housed the Israelites, the Philistines, the Romans and now back to the Israeli's. The ruins here are what they have found of the Roman empire and are fascinating.

Kari and I walked to the top of the hill you see in the background of the other picture. The tree here was brought in by Hollywood to film Judas' suicide in "Jesus Christ Superstar." After finding that out I couldn't get the songs out of my head!

Although this is a Roman Gate, the Philistines had a gate here also. And when they conquered Saul and his two sons, they hung the bodies on the wall of the gate to this city.

John the Bapitst replied in the words of the prophet Isaiah, "I am the voice of the one crying in the wilderness. Prepare the way for the Lord. . . " This is the wilderness of Judea, where John preached.

And this is where John "Prepared" Jesus by baptizing him. It's also the site of where the Israelites crossed to the land of Canaan. We did our baptisms in a different part of the Jordan for obvious reasons.

Since we were so close to the country of Jordan we got a chance to meet a couple of 19 year old Israeli patrols. In Israel men and women from 18-20 are expected to serve 2 years in their army.

We continued along the Jordan river until we got to the Dead Sea, where we explored the ancient dwellings at Qumran, where the Dead Sea scrolls were found.

We ended the Sabbath (which means "to sit") floating in a sitting position on the Dead Sea. It was like bath water and very relaxing. Until tomorrow, Shalom.

Latest comments

Share this page